CSW visit to Peru 04/02/2007
Executive summary
In 2006, human rights organisations, both in and outside of Peru, expressed concern that the election and return to power of Alan Garcia,1 could have negative ramifications for progress made in the area of human rights and democratisation. Observers were particularly worried about the new president’s ambiguous position on the implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission2 (TRC) recommendations and the fight to bring crimes involving human rights atrocities which occurred during the period of internal conflict to trial. Unfortunately, during his first six months in office, Garcia and others in his administration consistently promoted policies that appeared to validate these concerns and over the course of the visit, CSW unfortunately saw and heard little to contradict this impression.
The primary concerns of many of the people that CSW met with were related to the government’s antagonistic attitude toward the TRC, its report, and its recommendations. The TRC report contained conclusions on what had happened during the two decades of violence and it presented a series of recommendations aimed at bringing about national reconciliation and ensuring that the cycle of violence would not be repeated. These recommendations covered subjects including the prosecution of those responsible for human rights violations, the exhumation of mass graves and the identification of bodies, and reparations to the victims of the violence. Recommendations for institutional reforms to address many of the problems that had contributed both to the violence and the state’s failures in responding to it were also made.
Unfortunately, almost four years after the publication of the report, its recommendations have yet to be implemented in their entirety. There continues to be significant resistance from influential politicians, political parties and other powerful bodies, including elements in the military, who are implicated in the findings of the TRC. The current administration, under President Garcia, contains a number of individuals implicated in the abuses committed in the 1980s and 1990s, not least, Garcia himself. Many in the new government have accused the TRC report of being overly sympathetic to terrorists and have repeatedly implied that those working for the implementation of its recommendations are Shining Path stooges with the ultimate aim of destabilising the country.
In one positive step, in July 2005, the Peruvian Congress voted in favour of one aspect of the recommendations, which deals with government reparations to the victims of the violence and would allow for the creation of a national registry of victims. While this was a step forward, almost two years later many victims have yet to see any sign of the reparations themselves. The implementation of the National Plan for Reparations has been far from consistent across the country, and some regional governments have failed entirely to implement the plan.
Prison conditions and the wrongful imprisonment of innocent men and women also remains an issue. While the majority of wrongly imprisoned men and women have now been released, some still remain behind bars, and most worryingly, there have even been new cases of unjust imprisonment since Garcia came into power last summer. In addition, some politicians, members of the military, and elements in the Peruvian press, however, have consistently blamed rising crime and growth in the drug trade on the release of prisoners and improved prison conditions. They have called for a renewed crackdown, including a moratorium on further releases of prisoners and a return to harsh restrictions inside the prisons.3 This is extremely worrying for the work of CSW’s partners in Peru who have worked for years to improve prison conditions (in order that international standards of human rights are recognised) and to raise awareness and sympathy within the Peruvian public of the plight of the wrongly imprisoned. Most recently, the Peruvian government has indicated that it plans to re-open Challapalca prison, which was closed in 2005, after being repeatedly condemned by human rights organisations and the World Health Organisation for being inhumane.
The country is in a precarious state. Democratic institutions are fragile and Garcia’s administration has, thus far, shown no propensity to strengthening them. Instead they have attacked civil society through legislation, in the form of the APCI law, and appear to be reemploying much of the polarising rhetoric and some of the abusive strategies of the not so distant past. However, Garcia is keen for closer relations with the European Union and the United States, particularly as regards trade agreements, and seems to be attempting to position Peru to be part of Latin America’s moderate, more progressive Left. There is a valuable opportunity, therefore, for the EU and other members of the international community, to use this influence to push Garcia and the Peruvian Congress to move the country forward by implementing the TRC recommendations and making the reforms necessary to make state institutions more transparent and accountable while at the same time encouraging a responsible and active civil society.
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